Big Sunday Colchester 6th September

I'm super excited to be taking part in the Big Sunday in Colchester, this Sunday 6th September, alongside Made In Colchester! Big Sunday is a free festival taking place in lots of venues throughout the town and there will be music, food, performance, craft and lots more to see and do. You will find me on the Made In Colchester stall at The Waiting Room- come and say hi if you're heading down for the festival, I'm really looking forward to a lovely day celebrating all the town has to offer. See you there!

 Lauren Kelly will be selling her beautiful prints alongside Made In Colchester

Tracy Owen is the artist behind Curious Paper and you can meet her wonderfully curious paper creatures and people at the Big Sunday. Each piece is handcrafted using beautiful old papers and cloth

I will be selling a selection of my upcycled fabric jewellery, displayed in my vintage suitcase

The Made In Colchester Summer Fair

On Saturday 4th July I took part in the Made In Colchester Summer Fair at Colchester Arts Centre. It was such a lovely day with a great atmosphere and very busy so I didn't get a chance to take a lot of photos, but I wanted to share a little look back at the day and introduce some of the Collective members and their handmade work, all created in the Colchester area...

Brilliant prints from Lauren Kelly. The hard thing about the day was being tempted by all the lovely work on display!

Ar and illustration from Ella Johnston

Prints, cards, cushions and bags from Daisy Courtauld

A beautiful display from Tracy Owen

Stationery and illustrated gifts by Holly Trill

My display. I'm still enjoying using the vintage suitcases to display my brooches and they seemed to draw attention!

We ran drop in workshops throughout the day and they were all very popular. I taught 6 lovely ladies how to make felt beads- they all said how much they enjoyed it so I got a bit of a buzz from that. It's definitely given me a push to carry on planning a workshop programme- watch this space!

There was live acoustic music playing throughout the day which added to the great atmosphere. The Arts Centre where the Summer Fair was held is a former church that is now used as a music and event venue, so the acoustics are brilliant.

As if that wasn't enough, there was also a pop up cafe run by collective member Caroline Rhys-Lewis, serving lovely homemade cake and savoury goodies. I treated myself to a piece of caramelised apple and ginger cake- it had to be done!

 The Collective members enjoyed the day as much as the visitors and if you came along to support us, thank you very much. I'd also like to say thank you to the founder of The Made In Colchester Collective Lucy Hook-Child and to all the members of the group who put so much effort into making it such a fab day. We're now planning the Autumn Fair for Saturday 19th September!

If you'd like to find out more about the Made In Colchester Collective and keep up to date with news and events, check out our website here

Made In Colchester Summer Fair, Saturday 4th July!

I love being part of the Made In Colchester Collective and I'm super excited to say we are about to hold our first collective event! Come along to the Made In Colchester Collective Summer Fair on Saturday 4th July at Colchester Arts Centre (behind The Mercury Theatre) and meet the more than 20 artists and makers who make up the collective. Shop for handmade clothes, prints, jewellery, artwork and much more, all produced in the Colchester area. There will even be a pop up cafe and live acoustic music- it's all set to be a great day! 

There will also be free drop in workshops throughout the day. I'm busy preparing the needle felted beads workshop!

11am Card animal making with Hanne Mannheimer

12pm Handmade stamps with Daisy Courtauld

1pm Needle felted beads with Louise Dawson

2pm Monotype printing with Lucy Hook-Child

Find out more about the Made In Colchester Collective and the members on our blog here and check out our interview with Colchester Life!

 Hope to see you there!

On Instagram in April

Happy May everyone! I love this time of year in the UK, the countryside is looking so pretty and we're (almost) in Summer, my favourite season. April sped by but there was plenty of making and walking in the countryside in some lovely sunshine. Here is a look back at April through my Instagram photos...

I've been wearing my favourite Fair Isle cardigan from Boden lots this month, accessorised with my Fair Isle brooches. I think I'm a bit obsessed with Fair Isle! I'm going to be working on some new Fair Isle jewellery designs to launch later this year

On Easter Sunday the first Bazaar Food and Craft Market took place at The Waiting Room in Colchester, Essex. I was so pleased to have a stand there with my jewellery, it was such a lovely day with a great atmosphere. I'm actually there with my jewellery again today, selling with the Made in Colchester Collective (more on this soon!), come and say hi if you're in the area!

Starting work on a range of upcycled denim brooches and rings with Liberty fabric pieces! Watch this space!

I wear something handmade every day and in April I have been accessorising with my handmade brooches

I don't like to be in doors all day so I love that there were some lovely sunny days in April where I sat outside during my lunch break to do some making. The hard thing is then dragging myself back inside!

On the chilly days I retreated back to my trusty duffle coat! Lots of people say my brooches remind them of spring blooms

Beautiful sky and flowers on a hot day in the garden

A walk to peaceful Beeleigh Abbey Gardens, Essex. I love water and have always wanted a pond. I could just imagine sitting here in the peace and quiet when there are no visitors

This is the amazing view across the river Chelmer at the back of the gardens

Beeleigh Abbey

Walking close to where I live. I'm sure my love of water must come from living by the river!

Nelson cat! Chilled out as always

He has recently taken to diving under the throws on the sofa and sleeping like this (it's a cats life!), but I don't leave him like it for long incase someone sits on him (cue unimpressed looks from Nelson!)

A rare pic of him awake!

Spending time with a good friend- we had home made apple pie and lots of fun with her lovely Basset Hound Penny. I found it hard to get a good pic as she was bouncing around so much!

So that was April, here's to a lovely sunny May. You can follow me on Instagram here- come and say hi. I'd love to follow you on Instagram too!

What did you get up to in April?

Louise Dawson Design at Bazaar at The Waiting Room, Easter Sunday 5th April

Happy Easter! Hope you are all having a lovely weekend. If you fancy getting out and about this Easter Sunday, 5th April, The Waiting Room in Colchester, Essex, are hosting their first monthly food and craft Bazaar. There will be a great line-up of food and produce stalls, artists and makers. I'll be there selling my textile jewellery- it's on from 11-4 and is a short walk from the train station. Come and say hi! Find out more and get directions here

I also wanted to share some Easter bakes! The obligatory, but oh so yummy, cornflake cakes (made with all gluten free ingredients so my sister can scoff them too!) 

My first Simnel cake, with homemade marzipan! Off to try a piece now...

Wishing you all a very happy Easter, what will you be getting up to?

Weekend roundup- The Hazel Gallery Spring Arts Fair

On Saturday I headed into Colchester town to take part in the The Hazel Gallery Spring Arts Fair at The Waiting Room in St Boltolph's. I'd like to say thank you to Lucy Hook-Child who organised the day and bought together a lovely selection of makers selling their handmade work. Despite the soggy weather early on it was a great day with live bands creating a really upbeat atmosphere.

Saturday was the first outing of my handmade ring stand which was made following a tutorial on Pinterset using just a box lid, felt, wadding and a staple gun. Check out my Ring Display Ideas board here

I also had some new Hair-slide designs- I'll be adding some of the new designs to my Etsy shop in the coming weeks

One of my favourite stands was Comics and Cogs, who are makers after my own heart, creating jewellery and accessories from items such as watch parts, old comics and damaged books (such a clever idea). Check out their Facebook page here and have a look at the photos of the beautiful things they make. A piece from them is definitely on my wishlist!

Hope you all had a great weekend!

The Hazel Gallery Spring Arts Fair

On Saturday 26th April I will be taking part in The Hazel Gallery Spring Arts Fair, at The Waiting Room, Colchester. There will be lots of stall holders selling original handmade pieces, gifts and artwork, as well as live music, workshops, tea and cake (!) and vintage pop-up-shops on board a Routemaster bus! Well worth a trip!

Come and say hello, I'll be having a sample sale of pieces from my new Spring collection, as well as showcasing some new knitted rings and brooches in Spring colours. Hope to see you there!

The Hazel Gallery

There are exciting developments afoot for the creative in Colchester! Hazel Gallery opened in 2013 and  focuses on contemporary art and craft from local artists and makers. It is situated in a former newspaper  kiosk at the old bus station in St Botolph's, Colchester and is part of the St Botolph's Waiting Room Project, which forms part of the development of Colchester's Creative Quarter. As well as a cafe and bar, the waiting room is home to studios and workshops for artists and regular creative events.

 Fellow Cuckoo Farm Artist Lucy Hook-Child set up the Hazel Gallery and I was interested to know her motivation and inspiration behind this, so I interviewed Lucy to get some behind the scenes details!

1). Tell us a bit about yourself- have you always been an artist?

I have always enjoyed art and have been creative since I was little, my mum even saved my first paintings from playgroup and to be honest the colour palette isn't far off what I use now! When I left secondary school I went straight to art school. I wasn't sure what I wanted to do to start with, I just knew I wanted to learn more about art and design! I now have a studio at Cuckoo Farm where I create a lot of my own work to sell in the gallery.

Lucy's lino printed greetings cards which are available to buy in Hazel Gallery

2). When did the gallery open?

After spending the summer at the old bus station preparing the two old kiosks, Hazel Gallery opened in October- there are photos on the gallery website of how it was transformed. Hazel Gallery is part of a wider project at the old Bus Station, St Botolph's Waiting Room, which also houses various other creative projects, plus a bar and a cafe run by local chef Charlie Stoker.

The transformation of the newspaper kiosk to gallery!

3). What was your inspiration/motivation for opening the gallery?

During my time at Art School I had the idea of opening my own gallery/shop, but it wasn't until much later that it actually happened. I had been teaching art and photography for almost 6 years when faced with redundancy, and I decided it was about time to give it a go.Marc De'ath, one of the project leaders at the St Botolph's Waiting Room project had seen that I had been previously running art fairs alongside teaching and offered me the opportunity to set up and create a space for local artists and makers to present their work. I had gained a lot of contacts through the art fairs and the first artists and makers represented in the shop were previous stallholders.

4). Why is the gallery named the Hazel Gallery?

I named the gallery after my Grandmother, Hazel Hook-Child, she was the other artist in the family, always encouraged me to do artwork and was pleased that I chose to do a degree in Art and Design.

Mixed Media on Wood by Lucy Hook-Child

5). What has been the highlight/favourite moment in running the gallery so far?

I have had such a positive response from visitors to the gallery and I also get to organise events from here. We had a good turnout for the first event at The Waiting Room, a Christmas Fair and a fantastic vibe and atmosphere to the day, with artsists and makers booking pitches and selling their work, live acoustic music and and special Christmas food and drink from Charlie.

6). What's in store for the future? Are there any events coming up? 

There are several events coming up over the year. There will be seasonal art fairs at the waiting room starting with a Spring Arts Fair, which will include even more stallholders, plus art/craft workshops and demonstrations, Hazel Gallery open as usual as well as live acoustic music all day. Plus Hazel Gallery has several late night openings in collaboration with other happenings at St Botolph's Waiting Room

Thank you Lucy! If you're in the area please do stop by and have a look in the gallery and a have a drink in the Waiting Room- be part of the creative development of Colchester! Find out more on the Hazel Gallery Website

Tartan

Lately I've been making some cover button brooches and rings using Tartan off cuts- great if you love the Tartan trend but just want a subtle Tartan hit!

 I've taken a little selection of these new pieces to The Hazel Gallery in Colchester today and I'm going to add them to my Etsy shop soon, watch this space!